Dog Soldiers Retold: Currently CANCELLED
by Moonlup
Summary: Cancelled due to loss of muse.
1. Chapter 1

My first fanfic. Obviously, I lay no claim to Dog Soldiers and its characters. Noble Howlitt, however, is all mine.

This Fic starts with Spoon's last line. Noble is a char I've had for a long time, and her adventures span many crossovers, some of which are hinted at here. Well, not this chapter, but they're here. As of writing this, I have put up 7.

I'm terribly at characterization, so if anybody starts acting like they shouldn't, let me know and I'll fix it. Feel free to point out any bloopers, and constructive criticism is appreciated. Thanks!

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"I hope I give you the shits, you fucking wimp," snarled Spoon. The wolf was not impressed. It pulled its lips back and growled, as the first wolf recovered and joined in. Spoon blinked. At least he had gone out fighting. Suddenly, the first wolf was gone. The wolf holding his throat dropped him and snapped its head around, growling, to glare at a third, smaller wolf.

"Hiya," grinned this wolf, its voice deep and throaty, before grabbing the other one and throwing it across the kitchen and away from Spoon. "Stay behind me," it ordered over its shoulder, before giving its full attention to the other two wolves.

"Right," Spoon replied, grabbing his frying pan, not quite trusting the smaller wolf.

"Alright, you two, I'm only going to say this once. Leave. Now," the creature snarled at the two wolves climbing to their feet. The two roared back, flexing their claws threateningly. "Don't say I didn't warn you," huffed the wolf, changing. Blue scales appeared through its fur and its head and tail became elongated and lizard like. It happened within a second, and when it was done, it drew back its head, taking in a deep breath. The two wolves seemed to realize that something was very wrong, but by this time it was far too late. The wolf lizard's head snapped forward, spewing forth bright red flames that seemed to cling to the wolves' fur. The two screamed before being completely consumed by the flames, leaving nothing but two piles of ashes on the floor.

The creature changed back into its wolf form and glanced back at Spoon.

"You okay?" it asked, turning back to survey the room. It moved to the exposed kitchen door and peered down the hallway. Looking at it, Spoon could see it was different from the other wolves, sleeker looking, and more human like as well with black fur. Even odder was that it seemed to be wearing a leotard.

"Yeah," he said, still holding the pan defensively.

"Good," said the wolf moving towards him. Spoon raised the pan higher and it stopped, holding up clawed hands in a surrender position. "Easy, jack, I just saved your life. Why would I want to kill you now?"

"I don't know how you fucking werewolves think! How should I know?" The wolf put its hands down and tilted its head.

"Technically, I'm not a werewolf. My name i-" it began, but before it could finish, bullets came shooting down through the ceiling. "What the fuck!" snarled the creature, looking up at a newly made hole.

"Go on, Coop!" shouted Sarge as Cooper came through the hole feet first, only to be caught by the wolf. Coop stared up in horror at the grinning face, only noticing the big shiny teeth.

"Hello," it said, putting him down and gently shoving him towards Spoon. Cooper looked to Spoon, who shrugged and offered him his frying pan.

Sarge tossed his weapon through the ceiling, came through after it, picked it up and fired back into the hole. He was rewarded as one of the other werewolves yelped and others snarled. Seeing the black wolf, he brought his gun around and pulled the trigger but nothing happened. The wolf bared its teeth at him as well, as Cooper brought the frying pan down on its head.

"Ow!" it cried, ducking and springing away from the three of them towards the door. "What the fuck, man?" it whined, rubbing its head where Cooper had hit it. Sarge climbed to his feet and moved towards the counter with his men. "I swear to God, I'm not going to bother saving any more humans. It's just not worth it." That caught the soldiers off guard.

"You're here to rescue us?" asked Cooper, stepping forward, pan in hand. The wolf ducked its head and put its ears back. Spoon took the moment to wipe his face off.

"Not originally, but as long as you're here…Hand me that table, would you?" it said, gesturing to the furniture item. Cooper hesitated and the wolf rolled its eyes. "Oh, never mind, then," it said irritably, grabbing the table itself and flipping it up so its top was blocking the door. Then holding it in place with one clawed hand it snapped the other at the wood. After four thunks, claws appeared holding the table to the frame of the door. The wolf then repeated the procedure with the other side of the table. "That should hold them a bit," it smirked, its form again changing. It seemed to shrink slightly and its black fur disappeared into the black leotard on a decidedly female body. A human hand came up to ruffle her now short black hair before she turned to the three soldiers. Grinning, she asked, "How is everyone?" green eyes merry.

Sarge responded by collapsing, gripping his stomach and groaning in pain. "It's starting. Get out of here!" he growled at Spoon and Cooper, shoving them away from him. The woman was temporarily forgotten.

"Aw, shit," said Spoon.

"We're not just gonna leave you, Sarge," snapped Cooper, doing his best to try and stabilize the man, Spoon doing his best to help.

"That's an order, Cooper!" Sarge snapped back, before writhing underneath Cooper's hands. He was doing his best to hold off the transformation, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer.


	2. Chapter 2

"That's an order, Cooper!" Sarge snapped back, before writhing underneath Cooper's hands. He was doing his best to hold off the transformation, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer.

"When was he bitten?" asked the woman, suddenly in their mist, gently checking Sarge's eyes, currently wolf yellow, whilst managing to hold him down with ease. Cooper glared at her.

"This evening," he said curtly. She nodded once and changed her hand so it had grown claws, lifting it up to her face. Cooper grabbed her still human arm. "What are you doing!" he half-yelled at her. She looked at him, her own eyes yellow, her skull beginning to reshape itself. Sarge writhed again, gritting pointy teeth.

"What I must. Trust me, Cooper." She brought her maw to her own hand and bit off one of the clawed tips, picking it up in the other hand.

"Jesus Christ," said Spoon as Sarge let out an inhuman moan of pain. The woman became human again and grabbed Sarge's head with one hand, yanking on his hair to get his attention.

"Sarge. Sarge! Listen to me! Take this!" she yelled at him, holding her claw to his face so he could see it. "Trust me, Sarge, do it!" His own clawed hand came up and shakily grabbed the woman's claw, scratching her in the process. And the pain was gone. Just like that. Sarge blinked a few times, sat up. He looked at his hands, human once more.

"What just happened?" he asked softly, looking at Cooper and Spoon. The three of them couldn't help but smile at each other, relieved.

"Just don't drop the claw," panted the woman, pushing herself back from the group to sit down with her legs sprawled. "Had to be full moon. Phew," she gasped to herself, clutching her own abdomen. The soldiers turned to look at her as she staggered to her feet and leaned against the wall next to Sam.

"How did you…" started Sarge, checking himself over once more. The woman gave a faint smile.

"It's the claw," she said, holding up her hand, which had healed but not grown back the tip of the finger. "When you voluntarily took it, it allowed me to…hold back your transformation." A grimace flashed over her face before the smile returned.

"Wait, 'hold back'? You mean he's not cured?" asked Spoon standing. Sarge and Cooper joined him while the woman frowned.

"I wouldn't call it a disease, but no. You're still a shifter. I don't have time to train you tonight, not with these rogues here." She tilted her head as though listening.

"You mean the other werewolves," stated Cooper. She nodded then grimaced again, doubling slightly. "You're not changing now, are you?" he asked, raising the frying pan again. She coughed a laugh.

"No. At least I hope not. I'm holding back Sarge's wolf mentally. You're holding the claw so I can take the pain as well. Unless you'd rather have it?" She managed a grin. "What are your names, anyway?" Cooper hesitated, looking her over.

"Cooper. That's Spoon. Sergeant Wells." Cooper put the frying pan on the china cabinet. "Who, and what, are you? Why are you here?"

"Name's Noble Howlitt. Pleasure to meet you boys, though I would have preferred it under different circumstances. Maybe over dinner. I'm here to take out this pack of wolves, though your presence just changed that. Now my top priority is to keep you safe." She smiled cheerily.

"So, you're a werewolf hunting werewolf," said Sarge. Noble frowned.

"Not quite."

"I'll say," broke in Spoon. "I've haven't seen any of these beauties breath fire yet."

"Breathe fire?" asked Cooper. "What are you talking about?"

"Before you blokes came in from upstairs, two of those things were at my throat. She pulled 'em off, then turned all reptilian like and spat fire at 'em. Burnt to cinders," Spoon told his teammates.

"I've never heard of werewolves being able to do that," said Sarge cocking his head.

"Please, shifter. Werewolf is for rookies or rogues, of which I am neither," she paused to grimace, baring teeth. "Long story short, I have some dragon in me, which is why they send me after rogues. Dragon fire kills everything."

"Who's 'they'?" asked Cooper.

"And, uh, what qualifies as 'rogue'?" Sarge added, shifting his weight nervously.

"'They' are my pack. A rogue is a shifter who breaks our laws, usually by eating humans." She smiled. "We're not all movie monsters, you know."

"As long as you don't try to eat us," said Spoon seriously and the other two nodded in agreement. Noble grinned.

"Oh, there'd be no 'trying' involved. If I had wanted to eat you, you'd be eaten. Lucky for you I'm not rogue." She saw that this was not helping. "Sorry, quirky sense of humor. Comes with the terrain. Soooo, ah, whose dog?" she asked, petting Sam.

"His name is Sam. He belongs to the werewolves," Cooper told her.

"Really? I'm surprised they haven't eaten him."

"He was locked in a closet when I found him," Cooper added, watching their interaction. Sam didn't seem afraid of her at all. Of course, he hadn't been afraid of Megan either.

"Ah. Do you know how many rogues there are?"

"If you've killed two, that leaves three," Sarge told her.

"Four. You forgot about Ryan," corrected Cooper.

"Meagan might still be around," added Spoon.

"Would that be the girl in there with the bullet in the brain?" Noble asked, moving to wrap both arms around her stomach. "'Cause she's dead. Headshots work quite nicely, actually. Who's Ryan?"


	3. Chapter 3

"Who's Ryan?"

"He's the bastard who got us in this mess," Cooper growled as he skirted past Noble to check the security of the table.

"Really? How so?" inquired Noble, only half-listening. She slid down the wall into a sitting position, closing her eyes as she did so. Sam laid down next to her, head on her lap. Cooper tugged at the table. It didn't budge. Satisfied, he turned to answer Noble, taking note of her new position.

"He was called in to capture one of these things, and used us as bait. You sure you're alright?" There was a faint touch of concern in his voice. Noble nodded, eyes still closed.

"Peachy. I've just never had to hold back a fucking Irnaek before."

"A what?" asked Spoon, listening for once. Noble opened her eyes and nodded at Sarge.

"Your wolf is Irnaek. Full moon. That's when you change. It coincides with your birth moon." Her eyes closed again. "Irnaeks are known for being warriors," she finished softly. The soldiers were silent a moment.

"What does that make you then?" asked Sarge.

"Ritasaq, half moon. We're the level headed ones," she told them, a rueful smile on her face. "When was Ryan bitten?"

"Not sure. Sometime last night. We found him this evening with a wound in his chest. It didn't last long," Cooper said darkly.

"It was about midnight he changed," finished Sarge, fingering his own healed wound.

"So there's another rookie running around…" Noble said to herself. She sighed, then snapped her eyes open. "Well, that changes everything." She climbed to her feet again and moved across the room to lean against the china cabinet. Instead of trying to fight the pain Sarge's wolf was causing her, she was attempting to accept it and ignore it. It seemed to be working a little better.

"What do you mean?" Cooper asked cautiously.

"I'll have to hold off killing the rest of them till morning. Don't want to accidentally kill your man Ryan." Cooper scowled.

"That twat's not on our team. He set us up. If I was you, I'd kill him." Noble arched an eyebrow.

"Why, did he attack you?"

"Yes!" Cooper cried angrily, even as Sarge coughed.

"That's not quite true, Coop. We were interrogating him, he changed, and we…attacked him first." Cooper stared at Sarge, mouth ajar, a look of betrayal on his face.

"Sarge, how can you say that after what he did to us? He set us up!"

"Because it could have just as easily been me who changed, Coop," Sarge told the private gently. "That could've been me, mate. It almost was, if it hadn't been for Noble." He turned his attention to her for a moment. "Thank you, by the way." She smiled gently.

"Anytime. So Ryan didn't attack you, then?"

"Now that I think about it, after Coop shoved that sword through him, 'e took off. Bam, out the window," Spoon said thoughtfully. Cooper still looked upset, but resigned. Grudgingly he accepted that Ryan had not attacked them when he changed.

"You shoved a sword through him and he didn't attack? That's some damn fine control. He must have accepted his wolf then," Noble said, the last part to herself. Sarge was listening carefully to everything she said, not only for his men, but also for himself. Whatever clues he could garner about his current situation and options would be helpful.

"What do you mean 'accepted his wolf'?" he asked Noble taking a step towards her. Noble turned her head to look at him.

"The best way to gain control over your wolf is to not fight it. Accept it as part of who you are now. Getting that far alone usually takes months; it's rare that it's accepted on the first night. That Ryan has already shown as much restraint as he has bodes well for him having already accepted being a werewolf. 'Why' he's accepted it though is something I'll have to look in to," Noble informed him.

"Well, you don't have to accept nothing, Sarge. We'll find a way to reverse it," Cooper snapped glaring at Noble, who frowned.

"I wouldn't recommend that, Wells. Ignoring it will only make it worse. And there is no way to reverse it. Your only options are control or death. Werewolves of any kind are not allowed; it's too dangerous for themselves and others," she informed the rookie. Suddenly Sarge's wolf upped its assault against her and she hid a grimace by biting her tongue. "And the sooner you learn control the better. Your wolf _really_ wants out."

"Suppose I don't want to be a werewolf? What then?" Sarge asked her, dismayed at his options.

"I can kill you, though I don't think that's what you had in mind," she added quickly as Cooper and Spoon looked at her. "The other option is, again, control. Once you've learned that, it's possible to suppress the wolf. It's not done often, but it is possible." Sarge brightened at that.

"So I can live out a normal human life then?" Noble bit her lip.

"If you can call immortality 'normal', sure." Sarge did a double take, processing this information.

"How 'bout that, Sarge, you're immortal!" chortled Spoon, slapping the man on the back.

"Im-immortal?" Sarge asked Noble. She shrugged, mentally ignoring another attack from the man's wolf.

"Silver, scrambled brains, other than that, yeah. I'm damn happy being a shifter, but then, I was born this way. The Blooded don't always agree." She shrugged again, grimacing as his wolf ripped into her defenses even stronger than before. "That is one tough puppy you've got, Wells. If you do go the suppression route, you're going to have to have a nice long chat with him." Suddenly there was a loud crash from the bedroom above and everyone started, including Sam, watching the ceiling cautiously.

"Do you know what they're up to?" Cooper asked Noble as she moved underneath the hole. She shook her head, glaring into the darkness above.

"Might just be throwing a hissy fi-" Noble began before letting out a wolf-like yelp as a clawed hand darted down grabbing her head. Another appeared beside it and began tugging her up, slamming her into ceiling several times.


	4. Chapter 4

"Might just be throwing a hissy fi-" Noble began before letting out a wolf-like yelp as a clawed hand darted down grabbing her head. Another appeared beside it and began tugging her up, slamming her into ceiling several times before letting her drop to the floor. She was up in a flash, the furrows on her skin already healing.

"Oh, that is _it_!" she snarled, leaping up to pull herself through the hole before her body was wracked with pain as she forgot about Sarge's wolf. She dropped to the floor again, writhing as she brought herself back under control.

(Sons of bitches!) she mentally snarled as she lay there panting. There was a strange chuffing sound from the hole.

"Are they laughing?" asked Spoon as Cooper kneeled, hesitantly, next to Noble. She nodded as Cooper checked her over, surprised at how hot her skin was.

"You feel like you have a fever," he told her, noticing the pain in her face, helping her into a sitting position against the cabinet.

"Side effect. I'll be alright," she panted. "I can hold it 'till morning. My bigger concern is keeping you three safe that long. I'm severely hampered since I can't just kill the lot of them." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "There is one thing I could try to find Ryan," she said, wincing. Sarge looked interested.

"Like what?"

"Well, it depends on him. He has to work with me. But I'll need your help, too, Wells."

"Me? What for?" Sarge asked, puzzled and a bit nervous. Noble smiled.

"I don't know Ryan. I wouldn't recognize his voice. If you could, ah, 'listen' in and identify that I am speaking to Ryan, that'd be helpful."

"Wait, you just want to talk to them?" Cooper shook his head, standing. "I don't think they'll listen."

"Even if they did, I don't think Sarge would recognize Ryan's voice. Your's was certainly different when you were…not human," Spoon pointed out. He grabbed one of the chairs and straddled it. Noble shook her head.

"I won't be talking with them. I'll be speaking with them. Through Jotkin. Ah, telepathy," she added at the blank stares.

"Telepathy," Cooper repeated, disbelievingly.

"Sure," said Spoon, "how else would they talk when they're wolves?" Noble grinned and nodded.

"But I'm not telepathic," Sarge protested. Noble raised an eyebrow.

"You are now." He looked a little disturbed at that and she sighed. "I know-" she paused to groan, "this is happening fast for you, but I need you to adjust quickly."

"You'll have to excuse me if I'm having a bit of trouble with that," Sarge said curtly. It had finally hit him. What about Annie?

"Well, then, just adjust to this for now. You'll be able to hear what we're saying; all you have to do is tell me which one is Ryan. If he responds, that is. You up for it?"

"I'll just be listening?"

"Right." Sarge glanced at his boys. If it would help save them…

"What do I need to do?" he said, grabbing a chair near Sam. Noble smiled.

"Just listen. By the way, what's Ryan's rank?"

"Captain," Cooper said grimly, leaning against the china cabinet. "What's gonna happen if this works?" Noble blinked.

"Once I know where Ryan is, I can take out the other three. Sun comes up, he changes back, get the four of you to a safe location, and contact your government about why the left hand doesn't know what the right is doing," she ended on a growl.

"What does that mean?" asked Sarge.

"It means that there is a special ops group of shifters in most major governments that the government is aware of. They're the ones who contacted me about the rogues. Why Ryan was sent to capture a werewolf when they already have them…will have to be addressed. But let's cross that bridge when we come to it. Ready?" Sarge nodded.

(Captain Ryan? Can you hear me?) Sarge blinked.

"That's…different. So when you said son's of bitches before…"

"Jotkin," Noble nodded.

"I heard that too," said Spoon, unsettled. Noble snapped her head around to look at him, remembering the blood that had been all over the lower half of his face when she had pulled the wolves off of him.

"You didn't swallow any of that blood. Did you?" she asked, worried. He shrugged, a shadow of worry crossing his face.

"It's possible. Is that bad?" He saw the look on her face. "It is, isn't it?"

"If you can hear me, it's pretty likely you've been Blooded. Hopefully, tonight isn't your moon too," she finished dryly. "Though if you can hear me already…"

"But I haven't been scratched or swallowed anything," said Cooper softly and Noble turned to see the dismayed look on his face.

"It's also possibly you're both Zinns, humans who would make good shifters. We'll talk about it later. Right now…"

(Captain Ryan. If you can hear me, please respond by thinking your thoughts at me.) Noble paused, giving him a chance to respond, but also grimacing as Sarge's wolf hit her again.

"Ah!" yelled the three men grabbing their heads, while the wolves yelped.

"Sorry! Didn't mean to open the connection that much guys," she said both aloud and mentally.

"Is that what my…wolf…is doing to you?" Sarge asked shaken.

"Actually, that was a reflected shot," she said sheepishly. Sarge stared at her. If that was weakened, what happened when she feeling?

(Who is this?) growled a voice accompanied by underthoughts of suspicion, fading pain, and hunger.

"Is that Ryan?" Noble asked.


	5. Chapter 5

(Who is this?) growled a voice accompanied by underthoughts of suspicion, fading pain, and hunger.

"Is that Ryan?" Noble asked. Cooper nodded.

"It's him alright."

(Okay, Ryan, before we go any further, I need you to narrow your thought path and focus on sending to just me for security reasons. Just picture sending through an opening no bigger than a human hand can make.)

"I need to turn this into a private connection to keep the other wolves out. I can let you three listen through me, if you'd like," Noble said aloud. The soldiers looked at each other and nodded to her.

(Who is this?) growled Ryan again, though this time it was devoid of any underthought.

(My name is Noble Howlitt, Captain Ryan. How you doing this evening?)

(I've been turned into a fucking werewolf, after which that idiot shoved a sword through me,) he sneered coldly. (How do you think I'm doing?) Noble paused to raise an eyebrow at Cooper who glared sulkily back.

(Actually, Ryan, that brings me to my next question. Why are you getting along so well with your wolf?) Noble asked curiously, a hint of authority in her speech.

(I'm sorry, who are you again?) Ryan sneered. Noble narrowed her brows, annoyed.

(I was sent here to kill these rogue werewolves. Upon finding humans here, it is now my top priority to keep them safe. That includes you, unless you've gone rogue as well,) she told him sternly. (Now, I'll ask again, why have you accepted your wolf?) This time the words were loaded with the power of an alpha demanding an answer of a beta wolf and everyone in on the connection felt it. The soldiers looked at her warily.

(I…) began Ryan, struggling against her will. (I always wanted to be a werewolf,) he gasped defiantly. The lie was obvious to all. Noble sent a snarl to him, grasped his mind more firmly.

(Ryan, you would do well to learn that lying is impossible when speaking Jotkin. You would also do well in learning not to defy me in a matter such as this as the outcome will control whether you live or die. _Why have you accepted your wolf?)_ She asked again, bringing the full force of her will to bear. Ryan's answer was almost instantaneous, as she expected. No shifter could challenge her mentally, not when she was part dragon.

(What else could I do?) he gasped, snarling. (I could not stop it.)

(So you joined it. Okay. Thank you,) Noble replied, cheerful once more.

"Argh!" she snarled aloud as Sarge's wolf hit her again, impossibly seeming stronger than before. Maybe she was just weakening. "I'm alright," she reassured the soldiers, who had made a move towards her. "Let's focus on this."

(Where are you, Ryan?) she asked normally, a friendly question.

(Why?) Ryan asked suspiciously, not happy about being forced to answer the previous question. Noble sighed.

(Look, Ryan. I'm here to help you, if you'll let me. You know I'm telling you the truth because lies are obvious when speaking Jotkin. I need to know your location so I can hunt down the other three wolves and I don't accidentally kill you.)

(How can you help me?) he sneered in reply, yet there was a hint of desperation to his voice. Noble latched onto it, knew it was the way to keep him from going rogue.

(I can teach you how to control it, Ryan. It is possible. I can show you how to stop your wolf from emerging every time the moon is full. All it takes is some training, and that I know you can do. You've already taken the first step by accepting your wolf,) she told him, sending memories of others she had trained. Of her own training. (Just give me a chance, Ryan.) She waited, holding her breath even when Sarge's wolf attacked her again.

(Fair enough,) he answered curtly. (I'm just outside the cellar.)

(Are you alone?)

(Yes. Except for my wolf.) Noble nodded and looked around, seeing a door in the floor.

(Alright, Ryan, there's a trapdoor here in the kitchen. I want you to come through it, okay?)

"What?" exclaimed Cooper. "You want to let him in here!" Noble ignored him.

(Moving out,) came Ryan's reply. Noble got up and opened the cellar door.

"You can't honestly let him in here!" hissed Cooper. Spoon and Sarge didn't look too pleased either.

"Look," she said, doubling over for a second. "I know none of you are too fond of him for using you as bait, but I'll wager any money that he was ordered to do it. I'll even ask him," she halfway growled, pain making her short-tempered.

(Ryan, another question. Why did you use humans as bait for you mission?)

(That's classified.)

(Ryan,) Noble said warningly.

(Ms. Howlitt, even if you are able to help me, you're still a civilian and that's classified information,) he snarled curtly.

(Actually, Ryan, the moment you were Blooded I became your superior officer. And I'm ordering you to tell me why. If you don't, I will find out when we get back to civilization by talking to Blair himself if I have to. However, I won't be very happy if I have to wait that long, so why don't you just tell me now,) Noble said simply, no threat in her voice despite the words, and trusting that Ryan didn't miss much. She was speaking truth, after all. There was a moment where she assumed he thought it over.

(That's what I was ordered to use,) he said at last, disgust filling his voice.

(Thank you, Captain,) she replied, kindness and understanding filling hers.

"Happy?" she asked the three men, eyebrow raised.

"Not really," muttered Spoon. Noble doubled over, speaking when she came back up.

"He can keep you safe while I hunt the other three," she said, her voice brooking no argument. A thump came from the basement and she moved to the opening. "Captain Ryan, I presume?" offering a hand to help him up. He ignored her and came up on his own, carefully clearing the sword that was still in him. "Ooo, that looks painful. Well done on keeping your head after a three foot piece of metal is shoved through you." She closed the door to the cellar, then turned to see Ryan glaring at Cooper angrily. He looked ready to attack and Cooper knew it. He backed away cautiously, eyes never leaving Ryan. Spoon and Sarge watched carefully, ready to act.


	6. Chapter 6

If my wolf hadn't chosen to run, I would have killed him, Ryan said softly, deadly, tilting his head slightly. Noble t'sked, moving to stand in front of him to study the sword, but also to block his path, whilst ignoring a bolt of pain.

"Now, Ryan, saying things like that is what's going to get you into trouble. You can't just run around killing humans, even if they do shove a sword through you. It's not like it'll kill you," she said wryly glancing up at him. "Hmm, I see this has healed around the sword. I assume that's why you haven't taken it out?" The werewolf turned his attention to her.

Yes. 

"Well, it's gonna have to come out sooner or later, you know. And it's gonna hurt like a son of a bitch. It'd be best to get it over with now, while you're still changed," she told him, experience filling her voice. "Turn around," she said regretfully. Ryan eyed her and she raised an eyebrow. At last he turned, moving to the wall and digging his claws in, tensing for the pain. She put her hand on the sword handle. "Ryan, it's better if you relax. Less tissue will be torn." She watched as his back relaxed. "Okay, count of three. One-" she said, yanking the sword out as smoothly as possible while Ryan let out a monstrous bellow of pain. Whirling, he grabbed Noble by the throat and threw her across the room, where she crashed into the cabinet, breaking what few dishes were left.

Then Ryan turned to study Cooper. He bared his teeth in a grin, took a step. Sam started growling.

"That fucking hurt, Ryan. Hush, Sam," grumbled Noble, climbing to her feet as Sam stilled. Ryan growled, hiding his surprise at her quick recovery.

See how you do when you have a sword in you, he grumbled back. Noble held up the sword so all could see the bits of flesh sticking to it.

"Yes, I can't imagine it's not too pleasant. But you've already healed, so stop whining." Noble smiled cheerily at him. Suddenly she dropped the sword and fell to the floor, curled into a fetal position. "Oh, God in heaven," she moaned. Ryan watched impassively as Sarge and Cooper ran to her side, hesitating only to make sure he made no further move toward them. Spoon picked grabbed one of the pans of water off the stove and a spare towel and brought it over as well.

"Noble? Can you hear me?" Cooper asked, checking her pulse and shocked to find her skin even hotter than before.

You shouldn't fight it, Ms. Howlitt. It only hurts worse, Ryan said, a smirk in his voice. Sarge stood and stepped up to Ryan, glaring up at him.

"It's my wolf she's fighting, Ryan, and she wouldn't have to do that if you hadn't used us in the first place." Ryan tilted his head and eyed the angry man, an eyebrow raised.

I had been wondering why you hadn't changed, Ryan replied, his tone amused. Sarge swung at him, aiming to knock a few teeth out, but Ryan easily caught his fist and brought his jaws to Sarge's throat.

"_Stop_," Noble said and the two froze caught by Noble's will, Ryan's teeth inches from Sarge's jugular.

"Noble, what's wrong?" Cooper asked, applying the damp cloth to her forehead. She was breathing hard and her eyes were closed. Perspiration dotted her skin. Spoon, who had risen when Sarge had swung at Ryan, regarded the two frozen figures. Poking Ryan, who didn't move, he asked, sounding awed, "What did you do to 'em?" The woman's eyes fluttered open, blazing wolf yellow. Cooper, startled, dropped the cloth, but recovered quickly.

"I told you Wells' wolf was strong. Guess I won't be hunting anytime soon," she smiled weakly. "_Ryan, release Wells. Wells back away. There will be no fighting between you tonight. Carry on,_" she said, blinking rapidly as Ryan and Sarge did as instructed. Ryan growled.

How are you able to do that? Noble smiled at him.

"You're both beta wolves to my alpha. Even my father can't stand up to my will. Good thing I only use it when absolutely necessary," she laughed weakly before spasming and groaning with pain.

"Noble!" Cooper yelled.

"Present," she panted faintly. "Keep me here, Coop. If I go, so does Wells. Gotta stay conscious." Cooper nodded.

"Alright, let's get you sitting up then. Come on," he helped her into a sitting position. "Spoon, how much longer till sunrise?" Spoon checked his watch.

"At least two hours, mate," he answered anxiously.

"Shit. Noble, can you last that long?" Cooper held the pan of water to her lips and she drank a little.

"Don't know. Hope so," she replied, blinking blearily at him. Her pupils had changed to slits.

That's comforting, panned Ryan, moving to the table blockade and sitting. Noble coughed a laugh before the others could glare at him.

"No, I don't suppose it is." She groaned again, holding her sides as though they would burst. "Alright, alright. Talk. Ask me questions. Keep me focused here. I'm sure you have plenty," she stammered, eyes glowing in the light from the stove. Spoon moved back to his chair.

"Alright. Where're you from?" he asked, grabbing his frying pan and fiddling with it.

"Canada." Sarge frowned.

"Canada? But you grew up in the UK, right?" he asked, moving back to his chair as well. Cooper stayed beside her and tried to cool her down.

"Nah. Canada. Spent a lot of time in the States as well." Sarge tilted his head at her.

"But you haven't got an accent," he told her. Noble smiled, licking at a stray drop of water.

"Yeah, I do. It's a British one. I acquired it with my dragon. No one knows why." She groaned.

Dragon? asked Ryan.

"Aye. A scaly fire-breathing dragon," Spoon said.

"It sounds like you weren't born that way," Cooper said checking her pulse. Noble shook her head.

"Wasn't." She snorted. "Gods call it a gift. They gave it to me about 130, 140 years ago."

"140 years? How old are you?" Sarge asked. Noble counted, mouthing silently.

"'Bout 180, I think. Yeah, that sounds about right. Funny bit is I was born in 1955," she chuckled, then groaned.

"Where do you get the extra hundred years from?" Cooper asked, puzzled.

"Time travel."


	7. Chapter 7

"Time travel."

"Well, I'm not sure I believe that," Sarge half chuckled. Noble jerked her head towards him.

"I'm right there with you. 'Cept, ah! Damn it! Fucker hurts. Anyhoo, there was this fellow, Arnaud DeFehrn, who accidentally built one, and I accidentally went through it."

DeFehrn? I remember him. He was a terrorist. Disappeared a few years ago, Ryan said, sounding interested.

"Died a few years ago is more like it," Noble informed him, grinning savagely. "Not that the bastard didn't deserve it. Mmm, I think that was the sweetest kill I've ever had."

"He wasn't human, I take it," Sarge said. Noble shook her head.

"Only in the technical sense. He was a Nazi scientist back in World War II. Did all sorts of experiments, which he continued on shifters after the war. Wanted to harness our abilities for himself, but remove the whole animal part. He almost succeeded," she said darkly.

"What do you mean?" asked Spoon fascinated. They were all looking at her with interest. Noble smiled, a dark evil looking grin.

"He captured my family. Had a little vendetta against Dad for disrupting his work on the Jews during the war. He…experimented on us, and in the end, stole my sister's traits. Her shifting abilities. He somehow managed to transfer them to himself, but was able to suppress the wolf to the point where it never emerged." Again she grinned. "Unless you pissed him off. He was pretty pissed when I finally caught up with him. In hindsight, though, I'm sorry it was I who killed him. My sister will never be normal because of it," she finished sadly.

"If she's not a shifter, isn't she just human then?" asked Cooper, concerned.

"I wish that were the case. When her 16th birthmoon came around, her body tried to change for the first time. But since she didn't have her traits, she instead tries to absorb them from whoever she comes in contact with, whether they are a shifter or not. If they're human, she drains their life force. If they have some ability, be it shifter or mutant, she absorbs that as well, but only for a short time. And she can't turn it off. She can never make skin contact with anybody, lest she risk killing them." Noble paused to let a wave of pain pass over her. "Though we think we may have found a way around that. But don't ask, because it has to do with the government organization I'm with now, so it's classified."

Which government? 

"US. Been with this program, ah, four years now. Fascinating work. Really out of this world," she said, smiling at her secret joke before Sarge's wolf slammed her again. Thin blue scales began to appear around her eyes. Cooper was startled to see them form, almost like a mask, but he kept dabbing at her face. He noticed that her teeth had begun to sharpen as well.

Did they send you? Ryan asked, eyeing her from his corner.

"Nah, the shifter squad in your government contacted me," she told him, watching his reaction through half-lidded eyes.

We have werewolves in our government? Then why would they send me to capture one? Ryan asked, confused and somewhat distraught.

"Shifters, not werewolves. And that's what I have to find out. Probably some ultra secret group planning on doing some DeFone type experiments, something I will NOT allow," she growled. She was sweating profusely now.

"Alright, drink some water, Noble," Cooper said, holding the pot to her lips. She nodded and blinked, using the second set of transparent reptilian lids that had formed. Cooper had not been expecting this.

"Jesus!" he yelled, dropping the pot of water and scrambling back while Noble jumped at the cold water in her lap, banging her head on the counter.

"What, Cooper?" she groaned, rubbing her head. The sharp pain had driven back the constant onslaught from Sarge's wolf, if only temporarily. Cooper was breathing hard.

"Sorry, it's just…you blinked…sideways. It was…unexpected," he said, still standing and not making any moves toward her.

"What? Oh, heh, my bad. I hadn't even realized I was shifted," she told him as her features faded back to human.

Scared of a dog, Cooper? snarked Ryan. Cooper whirled on the sitting werewolf.

"Shut UP, Ryan!" he yelled, making the Spoon, Sarge, and Noble jump. Ryan simply tilted his head, predatorily eyeing Cooper. Noble arched an eyebrow.

"Please don't call me a dog, little one. Now, that much antagonism does not pop up in one night. Where have you two met?" Noble asked curiously, slamming her eyes shut as Sarge's wolf renewed its attacks. Ryan turned his gaze to the shifter for being called 'little one' at first, then because she had picked up on the history between him and Cooper. She didn't miss much. Of course, with nearly 200 years under her belt, it really wasn't that surprising.

Private Cooper attempted to join my team. He failed, Ryan told her, sounding superior. He turned his gaze back to Cooper.

"You wanted me to shoot a dog for no reason, you bastard," growled Cooper in reply. "And then you shot it anyway!"

"That doesn't sound very nice," Noble panted, viewing Ryan anew. Still, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. "Care to explain?" she asked as her eyes closed again. Ryan's eyes stayed on Cooper, willing him to understand.

The men under my command must be willing to follow my every order, even if they personally disagree with it. Cooper is incapable of that. 

"Still, a rough way to test the chain of command, little one," Noble said kindly, another spasm passing through her.

My team can't always afford to play by the rules, he replied stiffly.

"Tough missions, eh?" Ryan nodded his big wolf head.

Tough missions, he said softly.

The group was silent for a time, broken only by Noble's vocal attempts to stave off the pain. Eventually Sarge took over caring for her, as Cooper was upset about her acceptance of Ryan's dog killing. He sat down next to Sam, petting the dog and thinking things over. Spoon, bored, gathered up the cards scattered around the room and began playing solitaire, sans a jack. Ryan sat in his corner and watched everybody, his eyes constantly returning to Cooper and Sam.

"Noble," began Sarge, holding the damp towel to her face.

"Yes, little one?" she breathed, sounding very weak. A corner of his mouth twitched at the name.

"Is that a shifter thing, 'little one'?" he asked, moving the cloth to her neck. She gave a weak nod.

"Jus' somethin' to call a youngster," she slurred. "What was your question?" Sarge hesitated, rewetting the towel and wringing it out, the claw Noble had given him snagging on it at one point.

"I've a wife," he began, pausing when he saw Noble's smile and nod before her body was wracked by another spasm. He braced her, then continued when her face had relaxed. "I don't want to leave Annie," he said softly, moving the towel down her arms.

"Don't have to. She can stay with you, if she likes," she began, voice still weak and eyes closed. "As a human or a shifter. Her call." She cracked one eye to see the relieved expression on Sarge's face. "Hope your gal is open-minded." Sarge simply nodded.

"Ryan, I swear to god, if you don't stop staring at me..." snapped Cooper, glaring at the wolf across the room. Ryan tilted his head. Sarge and Spoon watched cautiously, even Noble managing to open her eyes fully.

You'll what? he asked silkily. Cooper furrowed his brow.

"I'll run a sword through you, that's what," Cooper told him. Ryan stood, rising to his full height, eyes glittering dangerously.

I wouldn't advise that, Cooper, sneered Ryan, flexing his claws. Cooper stood, readying himself for a run to the sword.

"I seemed to do alright before," Cooper sneered back.


End file.
